


Step 1, Come a Little Closer

by collectingnames



Series: My Miracle (fjorclay collection) [4]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: 5 Times, Comfort, Cuddling, Fluff, JUST, M/M, Weddings, absolutely tooth rotting fluff, fjorclay, handbinding, here we are, i saw some gifs of taliesin being cuddly and now one illustration and a fic later, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-13
Updated: 2019-10-13
Packaged: 2020-12-14 07:42:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,325
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21012215
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/collectingnames/pseuds/collectingnames
Summary: Five times they cuddled and one time they kissed.





	Step 1, Come a Little Closer

**Author's Note:**

> I'M SOFT. Also, any and all fjorclay stuff I post for a while is gonna have some of that sweet 'Caduceus gets to be the one being comforted' content bc seriously guys, gotta hug the cowman.  
(Title from Step With Me by Mika)

1\. **At Dinner**

Fjord kept glancing over at Caduceus where he sat next to him, his long pale pink hair streaming down his shoulders. They’d all doffed their armor once they came home, there would be no pauldrons or gauntlets or edges of breastplates to get in the way. But Caduceus was deep in a conversation with one of their neighbors who had finally decided maybe these obnoxiously colorful weirdos with a sun tree on the roof weren’t too bad. Or at least warranting more thorough introductions. But they were close now.

It felt like they’d just been getting closer and closer, steadily at first while they’d been at sea. And then at a breakneck pace once they made it back to dry land...and his old patron decided he needed to be ‘punished.’ Then the next thing he knew he’d been powerless, stumbling to Caduceus in the dead of night. 

Quietly, so as not to attract any attention to himself, he leaned over, resting his head on Caduceus’ shoulder. Caduceus’ eyes widened a little but he didn’t falter, didn’t skip a beat in answering their neighbor’s question about how the enchanted lights sustaining the rooftop garden worked. Underneath the table Fjord felt the leather of his glove slip into his own hand, twining his fingers in his own. And his heart fluttered in his chest at the reciprocation.

2\. **After Meditation**

Fjord and Caduceus trudged up to the rooftop garden with heavy steps, almost too tired to move their legs, almost. They were sore with angry bruises. It was entirely possible that one of them had broken a rib in the fight. Fjord made it through the trapdoor first and put out a hand to pull Caduceus up through after him.

Caduceus propped himself up with his hands on his knees, out of breath, “Wanna meditate?”

He nodded, “Yeah, yeah, sounds good. Is the incense still-?”

“Yeah, should still be there,” Caduceus pointed over towards the bedside table.

Caduceus shrugged off his vest and started to remove his breastplate, also dumping his shield and boots with a loud clang. He rummaged through the drawers looking for the block of incense. Blindly though, too tired to keep his eyes properly open but just awake enough to wrap his hand around the block and join Caduceus at the base of the tree. Caduceus snapped off a piece and lit it in the shallow dish between them. 

Fjord sat cross-legged on the ground next to him. The rich scent of the fumes hit his nose and turned off that always-tense part of his mind. His breathing evened out, slowed. And Caduceus just, just felt so warm next to him.

Neither of them could recall falling asleep. But Fjord was the first one to wake up, his arms wrapped around Caduceus’ torso and their legs tangled together. Caduceus’ arm draped around his waist. He must have felt him shift as he woke up because Caduceus’ eyes fluttered open and the arm around his waist pulled him in closer. Their foreheads pressed against each other, Caduceus gently ran a thumb along his cheekbone. In a gesture so soft that Fjord felt a wave of fondness slam full-force into his chest. Gods, Caduceus still had that easy, slept-well smile filled with so much warmth that Fjord felt like he just might catch fire. 

3\. **At A Tavern**

The Mighty Nein were seated around one of the tavern’s tables. In a pattern that had become the norm, Fjord and Caduceus sat next to each other. There was some discussion over whether or not they wanted to take this new job but it was a foregone conclusion. They knew they were going to agree to it. But dragging out their response might make their new employer more eager to secure their services. Jester and Beau playfully sparred in their argument over whether or not the job was worth taking. 

Fjord was leaning back in his chair, soaking in the warmth at his back from the fireplace behind him and occasionally taking a sip from his tankard. He had his other arm draped across the back of Caduceus’s chair.

Without either of them giving it any pause, Caduceus moved Fjord’s arm so that he was pressed in close to Fjord’s side, his face pressed into his chest. He had Fjord’s hand in both of his own where it fell over his shoulder. One held it steady, Caduceus’ long fingers curled around his own, and the other petted it. Despite the closeness, he was still paying rapt attention to Beau and Jester. Fjord couldn’t help but glance down at him fondly from the bottom edge of his peripheral vision. Of course then Caduceus nuzzled his head along where it rested on his chest like a godsdammned cat and Fjord had to tear his eyes away as blush bloomed under the surface of his skin. Not that he was embarrassed by the affection, far from it. No, he just knew himself well enough to know that if he made eye contact with him in this state he would never be able to look away.

Afterward, once they all retire to their rooms Caduceus doesn’t let go of his hand. Their relationship had been teetering somewhere between public knowledge within the group and secret. The two of them weren’t exactly subtle, but normally held back on the pda just enough that they couldn’t really be sure. But at this point, they don’t have to put any words to it. It now went without question that Fjord and Caduceus were involved with each other. They hadn’t really been intentionally hiding it from the others. No, not that at all, simply savoring the warmth of a relationship in its very beginnings. Fjord relished the new development.

4\. **In Bed**

A deep, breathy gasp tugged Fjord back into wakefulness. Caduceus sat in bed next to him, running his hands up his arms as if he were cold, breathing too fast and shallow. The velveteen dusting of fur coating him stood on end. 

“Deucy?” Fjord sat up next to him, putting one hand on his shoulder.

That snapped his attention off of whatever was racing through his mind, his dazed expression now fixed onto Fjord, “I-I, Fjord? I?”

He rubbed soothing circles in the middle of his back, “Hey, what is it? What’s wrong? You okay, Ducey?”

Caduceus’ words started to return to him, “It was? A dream? A vision? I don’t-, I can’t remember. I?”

Fjord pulled him into his arms and laid them both back down, running a hand through his hair, “Hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s all gonna be okay. I’ve got you.”

Caduceus buried his head deeper into Fjord’s chest, safe in the space underneath his chin, “You-, I can’t remember. But, I don’t know. We were-? Hurt? In danger? I-?”

“Shhh, shh, I’ve got you. I’ve got you, it’s okay,” Fjord tightened his grip, trying to ground him better.

He worked his hand in between their chests, palm resting over top of Fjord’s heart as if he needs to feel it firsthand to be reassured that this was real. That Fjord was here and hadn’t befallen whatever fate had become of them in the dream. 

Fjord held him as close as he could. He ran one hand through the short shorn sides of his hair in a pleasant scritch of blunted fingernails. He didn’t let up until he could feel Caduceus’ racing heart calm against his chest. Until Caduceus’ breathing evened out with sleep. Once he was certain he’s back in the clutches of sleep, Fjord can drift back off too. His grip didn’t let up, he wouldn’t let go, Caduceus was going to stay safe and warm in his arms, far from whatever had woken him up. 

5\. **For Healing**

Fjord kept himself propped up with his sword. It hurt to breathe, he’d definitely broken several ribs, among other assorted injuries. His ears still rang from the explosion of one of Caleb’s spells. By the Wildmother he could just lie down right here on the cold, rocky ground, he was so sapped of energy. One of the others pulled him out of the way for Caleb to finish writing the teleportation circle that took them back to Rosohna. Not Caduceus though, he was still busy alongside Jester trying to patch everyone up as quickly as they can before the circle was finished. Beau? Was it Beau? Whoever it was put a waterskin to his lips and encouraged him to drink. He almost managed to take a sip but coughs before it can properly sate his thirst.

Then two sets of arms hooked his arms and dragged him back into the teleportation circle. Once he entered he heard the scratch of arcane chalk on the ground and a dizzying, warm tug in his gut sent them hurtling back to Xhorhas.

To his surprise, Caduceus scooped him up off the ground into his arms and carried him up the stairs to the rooftop.

“Ducey, put me down, I can walk, I’m okay,” he protested weakly.

“Shut up,” his clipped tone surprised him, even as weak as he was.

He let his head fall back to look up at Caduceus. The fear and concern were unmistakable in his eyes, he was looking at him like he was about to fall apart, which, he didn’t feel  _ that _ bad.

He reached up and cupped one of his cheeks in his hand, “Ducey?”

Caduceus went still at the bottom of the ladder to the rooftop, “Fjord, please. You just kept going down. You need to rest.”

He couldn’t say no to that pleading in his eyes and voice, “Okay.”

Caduceus struggled to get them both up the ladder and over to the bed but he did it nonetheless. He gently eased Fjord down and set to undoing the buckles in his armor and toss it off to the side. His shirt and cloak were torn and stained but the wounds that had been underneath them were gone now, fresh skin pulled over them from the healing magic. Not that it had been enough. In his state of exhaustion, he couldn’t really recall how many times he’d gone down. He just remembered the fight being more than they could chew. He was looking over him for more to heal but all the wounds were closed, it was all just exhaustion now, he just needed to sleep it off.

Fjord put his hand over top of Caduceus’ where it searched for more to heal, halting it, “Hey, I’m gonna be just fine.”

Caduceus’ thumb trailed along the line of the scar that went through his brow, a nervous tic? Fjord suspected it might be a nervous tic that hit him whenever he took some serious punishment in a fight, “...I was scared. I’ve never seen you go down that many times before.”

“Yeah, didn’t get  _ quite  _ that close-quarters before the Wildmother,” He chuckled weakly, gods the bed felt so fucking soft.

Caduceus knelt down next to the bed, never taking his gaze away from him, “Please,  _ can I hold you? _ ”

A few minutes ago he might have protested but instead, he scooched over some in bed to give Caduceus enough room to join him, “‘Course.”

Caduceus doffed his armor, jacket, and boots and slipped onto the bed with him. He went loose and relaxed as Caduceus holds him close. One hand rested on his back where he could feel his heartbeat. And Caduceus, well, he’s just so soft and he’s so tired that he plummeted into sleep as soon as he was enveloped by Caduceus’ cuddling, curling around him. Before he could completely lose himself to sleep he tucked his head in the crook of Caduceus’ neck and sighed from the relaxation that carried him away toward the rest they both so badly needed.

**And One Time They Didn’t**

The intricate daisy chain, fashioned from every flower in the Blooming Grove, bound their hands together. Armor didn’t weigh them down today. Fjord couldn’t look away from Caduceus, he never wanted to look away again. He was just so happy and beautiful, his hair pulled back into elaborate braids with flowers woven into them. Colton had offered to do the same for him but his hair wasn’t long enough to braid so they instead settled on a flower crown. With all the same kinds of flowers as Caduceus so they would match of course.

Their friends,  _ Caduceus’ family _ were all here, joined together for this. He could buzz out of his skin with pure joy. Here in the dusk hours, painted with fireflies, of the Blooming Grove he wanted the moment to last forever. It was probably strange, to hold a wedding at a graveyard but nobody thought it unusual enough to voice that opinion.

Constance Clay held his and Caduceus’ bound hands in both of hers, “Fjord.”

He nodded in acknowledgement.

She continued, “Do you bind yourself to Caduceus? To love and to hold? To be one for the rest of your days?”

“I do,” his heart was so full he could feel joyful tears pricking at his eyes, still never once looking away from Caduceus.

“Caduceus,” she addressed him now.

“Hm?”

“Do you bind yourself to Fjord? To love and to hold? To be one for the rest of your days?” She repeated.

“I do,” he blurted the moment the words made it past her lips.

She produced a delicate crystal vial of water from her sleeve and painted a swirling symbol on each of their foreheads, “Then by the blessing of the Wildmother, I hereby pronounce the two of you are now one.”

Fjord tugged him down to his level by their bound together hands into a kiss that he wished never had to end. It was a crime that he had to breathe, that he couldn’t stay like this. Happy beyond all belief and kissing Caduceus, kissing his  _ husband _ .


End file.
